In oilfield operations, reciprocating pumps are utilized at wellsites for large scale, high-pressure operations. Such operations may include drilling, cementing, acidizing, water jet cutting, and hydraulic fracturing of subterranean formations. In some applications, several pumps may be connected in parallel to a single manifold, flow line, or well. Some pumps include reciprocating members driven by a crankshaft toward and away from a fluid chamber to alternatingly draw in, pressurize, and expel fluid from the fluid chamber. Hydraulic fracturing of a subterranean formation, for example, may utilize fluid at a pressure exceeding 10,000 pounds per square inch (PSI).
The success of the pumping operations may be related to many factors, including physical size, weight, failure rates, and safety. Due to high pressures and abrasive properties of certain fluids, sealing components or other portions of the pumps exposed to the fluids may become worn or eroded. Such defects are often detected late, resulting in pump failures during pumping operations and/or in severe damage to the pumps and other equipment. Interruptions in pumping operations may reduce the success and/or efficiency of the pumping operations, effects of which may reduce hydrocarbon production of a well. In some instances, the pumping operations may have to be repeated at substantial monetary costs and loss of production time.
Such consequences make pump maintenance and timely detection of defects a high priority in the oil and gas industry. Some pump health monitoring systems generate false alarms, causing unnecessary pump maintenance and interruptions in pumping operations. In preparation for pump defects and failures, pumping systems often include additional pump assemblies in standby mode, which is a costly measure of preventing interruptions in pumping operations.